Worm'd: Gestation
by Freohr Weohnata Kausta
Summary: They created a CYOA, they didn't expect to be thrown into that same world. Now stuck as a girl, they have to survive highschool, drama, and, most importantly, Parahumans. But hey, at least they got Frank- even if he's annoying. CYOA used: Worm CYOA 5: Update Gimel
1. Hacker 1-1

My first impression of the school was: It looks like shit. I'm not kidding, there were gang signs painted onto the walls, the locker doors, and was mainly dingy. The school I went to before moving was _old_ but it was more well-kept than this place!

I shook my head, clearing my thoughts, and walked a little bit faster to keep up with my guide. He stopped at a door to a classroom, "And here is the classroom. Please note, lunch is next hour." And with that, he left.

Rude.

Social Anxiety making a show, I knocked on the door hesitantly. The voice inside stopped and said something, and the door opened, allowing me inside. My gut twisted, butterflies attacking the sides of my stomach, as I spoke, "Hi? I'm new here. The principal said she sent you an e-mail? I-I'm Anabeth Briggs."

The World Issues teacher frowned and moved towards his desk, opening up another program and reading the message. "Oh. Oh! Well, welcome to Winslow, Ms. Briggs, if you could take a seat, I'll get back to teaching- I'm the World Issues teacher, Mr. Gladly, but you can call me Mr. G; We've gotten to the cape portion of the class."

I nodded, taking the only other seat open- one by a girl who was doodling in her notebook. Sitting down, I pulled out my notebook and started taking notes- despite already having started the class in my old school, I hadn't gotten to this part where they discussed Capes, so this was slightly new to me.

Minutes passed as I wrote notes, then Mr. Gladly's tone changed a bit, "Let's wrap up here," he spoke, clapping his hands, "Sorry, guys, but there _is_ homework for the weekend. Think about capes and how they've impacted the world around you. Make a list if you want, but it's not mandatory. On Monday we'll break up into groups of four and see which group has the best list. I'll buy the winning group treats from the vending machine."

A small roar of cheers came from some of the class. Several students got up and started chatting with Mr. Gladly, some started conversations with each other, while others just sat around doing something else. I packed up and slung my backpack on my back, trying to stand tall in the unfamiliarity.

Smoothing out my nerves, I held out my hand to the person I sat next to, "Hi, I-I'm Anabeth Briggs. N-new student."

The girl blinked, looking at my hand, as if surprised at being spoken to. Hesitantly, she shook my hand, replying, "I'm Taylor. Taylor Hebert."

Smiling at the cooperation, and hopefully making a new friend, I asked, "D-do you know where the bathrooms, r-restrooms, are?"

She nodded as the bell rang, "Yeah, follow me."

Doing so, we moved at a decent pace- about my usual, at least- up one staircase and she led me to the third floor. Marking the area in my mental map of the school, I entered in after her. I watched her as she twitched every time someone else enter, but did nothing. My leg was twitching; I stopped it. A stall opened up and Taylor quickly entered it.

It took a little bit longer for another stall to open up, but when it did I quickly entered it and slid the little locking thing, locking the door. I sighed as I rubbed my temples- the headache wasn't going away. Quickly reliving myself, I flushed then curled up and started rubbing my head- the headache wasn't going away, it was simply growing.

The door to the bathroom banged open, breaking me out of my headache-induced haze. My head jerked up at the sudden sound and, frowning, I looked towards the voices intermixed with running water. My head jerked to my left as I heard the sound of knocking- towards the source of it. A second passed, then the knocking happened again.

"Occupied," A voice called out hesitantly. _Taylor? What's she doing here?_

"Oh my god, it's Taylor!" a voice exclaimed outside the stalls. A whispered statement, "Yeah, do it," she replied.

The pattering of shoes on wet tiles happened, then the sound of someone trying to open a locked door. Mine. "It's locked." One of the girls- 'cause who else could it be- outside spoke.

"D-don't worry. I-I was just getting out," I said, curling out of the ball I was in.

A girl on the outside gasped, "It's the new girl!" A whispered conversation happened.

A ball of dread filled my gut. Standing up, I opened the door and blinked as it collided with something hard. Someone cried out in pain. I blinked- I didn't open the door _that_ hard, did I? Peering around the door, I saw a girl with a body you could call 'supermodel' and red hair clutching her nose.

"I- um," I stuttered, "A-are you okay?" She scooted backwards, away from me. "I-I'm sorry, sometimes I forget how strong I am-" she scooted backwards a bit more, and I stopped myself from rambling, biting my bottom lip.

The red-head looked at the two other girls with her and muttered, "C'mon," sneaking glances behind her at me.

"Sorry?" I offered right before the door closed.

The stall next to the one I was in opened and Taylor came out, saying, "Don't apologize to them."

I blinked, frowning, "Why not? I didn't mean to hit the redhead on the nose- she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Taylor stopped from examining herself in the mirror, "Wait, red-head?"

I nodded, "Yeah, and had the body of a supermodel. I wouldn't be surprised if she's a model already," I muttered.

"That was Emma Barnes. She-" Taylor cut off as I let out a little squeak of pain clutched my head.

"I-I _told_ you, don't- ow! Ow, ow, ow." I stumbled back and slid down the side of a wall, "No- don't- ugh, ow!" Blindly, I reached out with my arm towards a sink, feeling the edge of one I pulled myself up, and stared at my reflection, "No, d-don't- Ow! Stay, stay- ow. Stay." I took a few deep breaths- _in, out, in, out._ "Stay," I muttered one more time.

Looking over, I saw Taylor still standing there, looking at me confusedly. Grimacing, I said, "S-sorry, i-it's been a while since I've had one of these episodes." Flashes of memory- _Taylor Hebert, age fifteen, alias: Skitter, Weaver, _Kephri_, Queen Administrator, the one who controls bugs._ I grimaced again, "It rarely happens, and this has been the first in a _long_ time." _The one who kills a god._

"Who were you talking to?" Taylor asked.

I froze up and cringed- I was hoping she didn't notice- "I- um, uh- Frank- uhh-" my mind spun with realities; I've always been good at seeing different reactions of people when I tell them something. The only thing my mind was telling me, was that it was a _bad idea_. I ignored it; if this was canon- and I think it is- then, well, Taylor needs all the help she can. I took a deep breath, "Capes. T-they have this special source of power that- ow, Frank, shut up, I'm not telling her _that_\- that, well, provides their power. Frank has, well- ow! Shut up- he's pinged yours. Ow- Frank's _my_ source of power."

Taylor blinked. "What?"

I took a breath to explain it again, but she held up a hand, "No, I get it, but _what_."

I grimaced, "I know, it took me a while to understand, but Frank helped me." **[SMUG PRIDE]** I rolled my eyes at Frank's declaration.

"So, you know. . ." she waved her arms.

I shook my head, getting her meaning, "No! It's only Frank that pings the other sources of power, I don't feel anything. I didn't even _know_ you were a cape until Frank told me."

"So, like, he can ping other capes and tell you without them noticing?" She was rightfully worried.

I shook my head, "No, it gives other capes a feeling of something tapping glass- well, at least that's what one of my old friends told me."

"Huh."

"Sooooo," I dragged out, "What are _your_ powers?"

Taylor glanced around, specifically the door and the stalls, before saying, "Not here, someone might be listening in."

I shrugged, "Okay." I reached into my backpack and pulled out a small black box; opening it up, I flicked the switch on it- towards the side which had 'off' printed on it.

Taylor looked at it dubiously, "What is that?"

I held it up, smiling, "I call it the Black Box; it creates a force field that cancels out sound in a certain area- I turned it on when Frank warned me of the incoming attack."

"I-" She shook her head, "Nevermind. C'mon, let's go to my place."

"Okay!" I (Probably) made my first friend here! Yay! I couldn't repress the smile as I followed Taylor out of the school- the befuddled looks at me and Taylor did nothing to remove my mood- and onto a bus waiting at a bus stop.

This day, despite how chaotic it was, was what I'd consider a success. I made a new friend, despite me having a breakdown in front of her, and now we're going to each other's houses!

I chose to ignore Frank saying that we skipped half a school day to do so.

* * *

**I have no idea what the heck I'm doing, but I'm doing it.**

**So, I've gotten back into the Worm fandom again, but hey- I'm bored, you're bored, we're all bored.**

**So, this is based off of a CYOA I did, and, well, here's the result. I'm going to cross-post this on Spacebattles.**

**By the way, there's going to be an alternate choice one of these- the first one i did- and i'm _also_ going to post it. It'll be called- until further notice- No. Yup, that's it. It's called 'No'. If people want, I'll post the CYOA results that i did to show what her powers and choices are.**

**Until the next time my muse strikes, **

**-FreohrWK**

**(Additionally, for NMWH,WNS, the chapter's going to take a bit more time to write out, as my muse isn't actively trying to write that. I'll try to write on it from time to time, but my writing schedule's been thrown off from Spring Break.) [At least i've gotten _some_ done on it.] {by 'some' i mean 280 words. ugh}**


	2. Hacker 1-2

I looked around the house, "Nice place. Kinda small, but it kinda appeals to the hominess. I like it." I smiled brightly at Taylor.

She shrugged, "It's just home." She walked over to a door underneath some stairs, "C'mon, this way. I'll tell you my powers when we're in the basement."

I nodded and walked down the steps, careful not to disturb anything. "So, why are you all of a sudden just going to tell me your powers? I mean, I've done nothing to gain your trust, so why are you telling me?" I couldn't help but ask.

I heard a sigh from behind me, "You said that. . . 'Frank' had 'pinged' me when he was looking around and told you. So, that already blew my cover. I don't really see any reason to keep it hidden to someone who already knows."

"You, you could've killed me. Easily- I had no weapons to defeat you with, no witnesses, and especially a good reason to silence me for good. So why?" I turned around to face Taylor in the dark.

I heard a click and a faint light lit up the room from a single bulb in the ceiling. I saw Taylor curling up in herself next to the light switch, "I. . . I don't like killing. And, really, there was no reason for me to lash out at you. You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time." She shrugged helplessly.

I tilted my head. "Hm," I grunted. I grinned brightly, "Okay! This means we're friends, right?"

"I- uh- um," Taylor stuttered, looking lost.

"Yay!" I sped over to her and gripped her in a hug, "I didn't hear a 'no'!" I sang. Releasing her, I moved back under the only light, bouncing lightly on my feet, "So, what's your power?"

Taylor was frozen, like a deer in headlights. I briefly thought that I'd frozen her in time, but then she unfroze, her wide-eyed gaze shrinking. Shaking her head, probably clearing her thoughts, she looked up at me and took a deep breath, "Bug control," She said.

"Bug. . . control," I repeated, "Huh. Cool! Can I see?"

Taylor was flabbergasted. Heh, flabbergasted- funny word, that. "Yo-you're not scared? Afraid? Disgusted?"

I pursed my lips to the side, "Nope! I honestly think it's a cool power! I mean, how many people do you think can control _thousands_ of creatures at once? None! Besides, it's got a versatility of uses! From just casually turning on the lights to intimidating your opponents, it's useful all around!" I should probably tone down the excitement. Maybe.

She just stared. Did I break her again? It was probably how I said all that in a cheery voice. Highly likely. 'Twas the most probable answer. Maybe I should say that I have a stranger power? It's likely since I keep breaking people by just speaking.

I opened my mouth to say something, but Taylor shook herself out of her stupor. "Oh, good, you're not broken," I said instead.

"Are you sure you want to see it?" Taylor asked, as if I was going to squee when I saw a single ant.

"Yup! C'mon I wanna see it!" I prodded.

"Okay," She said, then suddenly- there were bugs. Crawling out of several holes and the top windows, bugs of every shape, size and coloration were gathering around us, only leaving a circle around us clear.

My eyes widened. "Woah," I breathed, looking around, "that's cool." I'd already knew about how she could control bugs, but seeing it for myself was honestly impressive. I couldn't wait until she found out other uses for it.

Seconds later, they started dispersing and Taylor looked at me, "I showed you my power, now tell, or show, me yours."

"Equivalent Exchange, huh? Okay! I'm a Tinker! Well, at least that's my main specialty; I can also create blades from thin air that last for a few hours, and I can shift my appearance!" I told her, grinning.

"Can you. . ?" Taylor trailed off.

"Oh! Sure!" I held my right hand at my waist and pulled out, like I was unsheathing a sword, and the air shimmered with pale blue light, outlining the shape of a sword. Deciding to go with something small, I 'scanned' Taylor- which is just basically making a three-dimensional model of her body in my head- and morphed into her, making myself a near-exact copy of her.

Taylor gaped. I gaped with her. She held up her hand, I held up mine. She took a step forward; I took a step forward. Another step. And another, until we were at each other's noses. This was fun. She held up a shaky hand up; I did so, shaking my hand. I booped her nose, saying, "Boop!"

Taylor let out a squeak and fell backwards. I laughed happily and sheathed the still-summoned sword, de-summoning it. Reaching forward, I helped her up, shifting back to my original appearance, grin still in place.

"W-what? Why?" Taylor asked as I pulled her up.

"For fun. It's not often I get to change my appearance for fun. Plus, you wanted to see it." I shrugged. I pulled a few strands of hair in front of my face and messed with the coloration of it.

Taylor tried to refute it, but ultimately sighed, giving up. "What about your Tinker power?"

"Oh! That? I can create any weapons that humanity can create in ten decades! Also the weapons from right now, too."

"Can you. . ?" She made a shooting motion and sound.

"Make weapon noises? Yeah! Pew pew!" Taylor gave me a flat look which I laughed at, "Just kidding, I can't make any laser weapons, only kinetic-based ones. I tried to, once, but, heh, it blew up in my face." Frank was yelling at me to stop when I did that. Something about the space-time continuum being destroyed? Don't remember. There was a lot going on, then. Between the endbringer sirens, Frank yelling, and my dad starting up his tanks, I couldn't really hear that well.

"No, I mean actually _use_ them!"

"Oh. Yeah. I can use them, since my dad found out that I triggered and figured out how my actual powers, he made sure I knew how to use a firearm. I already knew because of Frank, but extra information also helps."

"So wait, your dad knows you're a cape?"

I nodded, "Yeah! He even helped me through the transition period and how to deal with the urges to tinker."

Taylor blinked confusedly, "Wait, your dad's a cape?"

"Mhm!" I agreed.

"So you're a second-gen trigger."

"Sorta? My mom wasn't a cape, so I don't know how that'd work, truthfully."

"Wasn't? You mean 'isn't'."

"No. Wasn't." My cheery mood was gone in an instant.

She flinched, "Oh, sorry."

I took a deep breath, re-centering myself, "I-it's okay- she died when I was younger." I'm not going to mention her dying was my trigger.

I forced a grin on, "S-so, what's your costume? Every Cape needs one."

Taylor latched onto the subject change, "Yeah, one moment." She moved over to the fireplace and, unscrewing the bottom board, she pulled out a gym bag. Lifting it up she set it down on the table and opened it up. She lifted it up on its side and upended the contents onto the table. Tumbling out onto the table were wire cutters and several swaths of mottled yellow-white cloth.

Well, technically, it wasn't cloth, it was silk. Specifically, spider silk. Sliding over to her work table, I looked over it, "Ooh. Fancy. Looks ugly. I like it."

"Er, what?"

"Hm?" I hummed distractedly, looking over the costume.

"You- you simultaneously insulted and complimented it. Why?"

"Well, it's spider silk- which means it's durable- and it looks like you threw it into the mud and tried to clean it, but couldn't get all the mudstains out."

"What? You- you did it again!"

I opened my mouth- "NO! Don't say anything! Honestly, they should give you a Stranger rating just for the amount of _bullshit_ that spews out of your mouth," Taylor cut me off, pointing at me.

I pouted, "Rude." My pout morphed back into a grin, "So, we gonna go patrollin' tonight?"

"Wha-? No? Why?"

"Well, you got a costume, I have a costume, we both have powers- why wouldn't we?"

"I- uh- I- the costume's not complete yet!" She sputtered.

I blinked, "Okay, finish it, then we can go patrol."

She couldn't stand up to the logic of the sentence. Kinda like 'this sentence is false' but better- because it's true! She sighed, saying, "Fine. It's not as if I had a choice anyways." She held up her backpack.

Her damp backpack.

I frowned, "What happened to it?"

"I, um, it, uh, sorta-" She was cut off by my laughter, "You fell back into the toilet, didn't you?" She nodded sheepishly. I peered closer at it, "The backpack itself _looks_ salvageable, but considering how the rest of the school looked, I'd guess that it'd not be salvageable."

She took a deep breath, nodding.

I shrugged, "Eh, oh well. I'll leave you to fix and finish up you costume! I'll see ya tomorrow!"

"Wait, just like that you're leaving?" Taylor looked befuddled. Another funny word, befuddled.

"It looks like you don't need my help to work on it, and plus I'd only be in your way when you work. Don't worry, I'll drop by tomorrow to see how you're doing." With that said, I climbed the stairs to the main floor, leaving Taylor to her costume.

Now, it was time for me to get started. This'll be fun.

* * *

**Okay, now, I know I said that if people wanted to see the build, then you could ask, but hey, I'm just going to throw it up here.**

**So, here's the build:**

**Scenario- **Gestation; 15 CP, 15 SP; Starts out April 8th, 2011 (Gestation 1.1)

**Path- **Vigilante; No Slots for powers, can buy as many as wanted.

**Origin- **Insert, Female, Teenager

**Civilian Identity- **Highschooler -0 CP

**Costume-** Custom -4 CP

**Skills- **Banter, -1 CP, References that no-one but you get; Parkour, -2 CP, Running through obstacles in complex environments;

**Shard-** Foreign Element, Abaddon, -3 CP, -3 SP; Powers far more potent than Natural Triggering and have slightly changed restrictions than normal;

**Perks/Flaws-**

Perks: Plot Convenience, -1 CP; Voice in my Head, -2 SP; Second Trigger, -4 CP, -3 SP;

Flaws: Humble Beginnings, +5 CP, +5 SP;

**Gifts-** Plot Relevance, will be at a point where something important will happen;

**Powers-**

Mover-

Jump; - 1 SP

Brute-

Peak Condition; -1 SP

Breaker-

Immunity; -1 SP

Master-

Technopathy; -2 SP [Due to Abaddon Shard, can work with limitedly with Tinkertech not their own]

Tinker-

Small Arms; -3 SP [Due to Abaddon Shard, will work with anything from Earth Omega/Earth where Worm is a story]

Repair; - 2 SP [Due to Abaddon Shard, repairing broken electronics will make the work better than when they were first made]

Blaster-

Infinite Ammo; -1 SP

Thinker-

Proficiency; -2 SP [Due to Abaddon Shard, will remain for an hour after using weapon/machine]

Striker-

Revenant Blade; -2 SP [Due to Abaddon Shard, summoned weapons will last for an hour after summoning]

Changer-

Cosmetic Shapeshift; -1 SP (Second Triger) [Due to Abaddon Shard, removes the 'once a day change' restriction]

**Path-** (Vigilante) Ambivalent [Will attack heroes and villains indiscriminately- but doesn't have to] +4 CP, +4 SP; Blade, - 1 CP; Sniper Rifle (Collapsible) -3 CP; Tool Belt, -1 CP; Tinkertech, -4 CP;

**Yup, that's her powers. Looks pretty cool huh? Eh. I don't care.**

**Hope ya liked it!**

**-FreohrWK**


	3. Hacker 1-3

Entering the house, the first thing I got from dad was, "Your hair's pink."

I stopped, blinked, then pulled a few strands in front of my face. "Oops." I quickly released the mental grasp I had on the changer powers, letting it fade into my normal brown-blonde hair.

"So, why'd you skip school?" dad asked, getting into the standing position that'd I call the 'disapproving dad position'.

"You assume I skipped," I shot back.

He pointed at the clock which read: '2:55'. I looked at him, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you I ran here so fast that I went back in time."

He shook his head negatively. "Darn," I muttered. "I made a new friend, got into a little scuffle in the bathroom, went to friend's home with them, then decided to come straight back here." I shrugged, "To be fair, it _is_ a Friday and I doubt that there'd be anyone who'd care if I left school during lunch."

Dad considered my words, "Fair enough. As punishment for skipping a half day at school, you're going to have to help me with the tanks in the basement." I opened my mouth. "Without any input."

I pouted, now that wasn't any fun; I had plenty of good ideas! "C'mon, we got until nine at night before you have to go to bed!" Dad spun on his heel and started into the basement. I had no choice but to follow him.

-Sunday, April 10th 2011-

After two days of _excruciating _torture (read: working with dad in the basement on his tanks without being able to say _anything_), I was finally free! So, of course, the first thing I did was go over to my new friend's place.

I stepped onto the porch and rang the doorbell. A few seconds passed. I rang it again. Another few seconds. I rang it again. Another few seconds. I lifted my hand and started rapidly tapping the doorbell. I could hear the tune starting over and over again from outside.

I finally heard a faint, muffled voice from inside, "I'm coming, I'm coming!" I stopped ringing the doorbell and waited. Opening the door, was a tired-looking Taylor. Looking up befuddled, she asked, "Wha-? Anabeth? What're you doing here?"

"Helping you of course!" I replied brightly.

"With what?" she asked.

"Mr. Gladly's homework, of course!" I added a wink after I said it.

She peered sleepily at me, then shrugged and let me in. "You're just lucky that my dad's not here right now." She paused to yawn, "I'm gonna get changed, then we can work."

"Okay!" I replied. I set my backpack- which was totally not filled with my Tinkertech costume- down and pulled out my textbook on cape history and my notebook filled with the notes I took from Mr. Gladly's class.

Hearing footsteps on the staircase, I added, "You can take a shower if you want, I can get started!" the footsteps stopped and started back up. A couple of seconds later, the sounds of running water came from upstairs.

Smiling, I got to work. Several minutes later, footsteps started back up and Taylor rounded the corner of the stairs, looking more awake than before. Sitting down, she opened up her own notebook. "So, what do you have already?" she asked.

Spinning the notebook around, I pressed my pencil to several points I made about the effect of capes on the world, "First, I have how The Golden Man came in and changed up the world, but I'm pretty sure that most people will have that down. Second is how the first parahuman- discounting Scion- Andrew Hawke, died from a clubbing on his head from trying to stop a riot."

"Wait, wait, hold up. How does this have to do with the effects of capes?"

"I'm getting there," I replied, "After seeing Scion, Parahumans started popping up everywhere right? Right, so with that- there was an entire upheaval of laws, law enforcement and even marketing. Instead of simple heroes in comics, there were actual heroes going around saving, defending and helping people out. Instead of selling little Iron Man figurines, markets started selling Hero, Eidolon, Alexandria, and Legend figurines."

"'Iron Man'?" Taylor echoed.

"Earth Aelph superhero that doesn't have powers, but has a high-tech body-armor suit."

"So, he's a Tinker."

"Sorta, but without the actual source of power that we have. He's just really smart."

"Huh."

"Yeah, but we're getting off topic." I looked back down at my notes, "Now, with the boom of capes, came the entire upheaval of laws- what new laws should be made and what laws are annulled for them, because, well, we got superpowered people here now. And through that, we got the Parahuman Response Team, the PRT."

Taylor stared. "This. . .this is all so convoluted. And messy."

I shrugged, "History typically is."

Taylor stared at me, then sighed, submitting to my superior knowledge. We worked on Gladly's assignment until lunch, when we stopped for a break. Looking over what we had put down, I commented, "There's a lot more where marketing is concerned."

Taylor shrugged from where she was prepping the leaf water, "Well, what changes the world more, politics or people?"

I paused, considering it. I shrugged, "Fair enough." Looking back over it, I listed out what we had down, "The tech boom, cape celebrities, law enforcement- typical stuff. I think we might've gotten it all. If not, then it's just simple normal things that we sometimes overlook."

"So, that's it?" she asked, setting the cups of leaf water- also known as tea- down.

"Pretty much, so." I leaned in closer, "Do you wanna see my costume?"

Her eyes widened, "You have it?"

I grinned, "Yup." I lifted up my backpack, "It's in here."

Taylor got back up- she had just sat down- and moved towards the basement door, "C'mon, I want to see it."

I grinned and slung my backpack on, grabbed my leaf water- it's good stuff- and followed her down. Walking down into the dimly lit basement, Taylor stood waiting in the light. She waved her arm, "Well?"

I grinned a bit, "Being a bit forward, aren't you? Asking another girl to strip. You sure you're straight?"

Taylor's face brightened red, "No! That's- no! Just no!"

I grinned, setting down my tea, I pulled off my backpack and pulled out my costume. It was a dark red, near blood-red, but not as dark. The highlights on the sleeves and pants were a bronze color, reflecting off the dim light. It had a silver chestplate with intricate designs on it, easily contorting over my breast, baking it blend seamlessly with the rest of the outfit. There were metal shin and leg guards that raised up to middle-thigh, but no feet guard. I had gauntlets and upper arm guards that would allow me to punch someone with more force than I could usually do and leave a mark while doing it. My hand was free of any armor for easy dexterity when handling my guns. The helmet was in the traditional top-only protected, while leaving my mouth free. It was spherical on the top, leaving no mark to show where it had been welded together- not that it had even been welded. The eyes-holes had a bit of impossible-break glass- as I liked to call it- with a HUD showing information like how much ammo I had in weapons and time limit on summoned weapons- the HUD was as much my power as anything else.

I also had a scarf. Love that thing.

Motioning with my finger, I told Taylor to turn around while I changed. She did so.

A couple of minutes later, I was changed. Telling Taylor so, she turned around and gaped. Striking a pose- that wouldn't be out of place in a magical girl anime- I said, "Gun Mistress is here to fight!"

Taylor continued gaping. Relaxing the pose, I walked up to her, "Uhh, Taylor, you okay?" I poked her face.

Her jaw snapped up and she started walking around me, "So, like yours is already made? You've had it for a while?"

I nodded, "Yeah, when I first triggered and made my outfit, I based it off a game slash anime character called Saber- it had an entire dress thing- but modified it for my own use. I used to have the dress thing when I was younger, but I took it off because it just wasn't logical to have a giant skirt in the middle of battle. Now I have this small skirt over leggings." I pulled at the skirt that went down to mid-thigh, just covering the tips of the leg armor.

"And the helmet?" she asked.

I pulled it off, "Based off of the Romans' helmets, but without the mane and loose side-burn type protections- instead it has them welded on and higher on the face. When designing the front, I took a few cues from the Clone Troopers in Star Wars and have the entire front top covered, while leaving the lower portion uncovered."

"Why?"

I tapped the scarf, "Because of this."

"Because of a scarf."

"I like smelling it." To prove my point, I took a deep whiff of it.

"I- I'm not going to even go there."

"Best not to," I agreed. "It also helps with tilting my head to look down scopes- the scarf protects my neck from rubbing the wrong way on my armor while I tilt my head to look down the scopes."

"So, not just for aesthetic."

"Yup, it's quite useful for keeping out sand and dust, while also filtering the air somewhat."

"Huh." She took a few more looks around, commenting on my outfit, while I answered some of her queries. Standing back up from the interrogation, she said, "I feel so outclassed and underperformed with mine."

I tilted my head, "Well, you _have_ just started, haven't you? I've been a cape for several years, now."

She shrugged, "I know, but still."

"Besides, yours is, what, spider silk? That stuff's pretty tough." I motioned to the tiny fireplace.

She shrugged, "I saw a documentary a while back saying that spider silk is pretty strong."

"I'm pretty sure that it's stronger than steel when put together correctly."

She raised an eyebrow, "Really? Never heard that before."

I shrugged, "Probably is. I heard it a while back." _An entire lifetime ago._ I banished the thought away, trying to ignore it.

"Might look it up later, see if it's true."

"Good idea. Anyway- about _your_ costume."

"What about it?"

"Do you have everything ready on it?" I asked eagerly.

She shook her head, "No, just need to do a few more details on it, then I'll be ready."

"Like what?" I asked, moving over to where Taylor had emptied the bag with her costume out on the table.

"Just need a few more major details- the goggles fitting in correctly, an old pair of glasses to go under that, then I just need to pack a small bag for a few things." She pointed them out as she was talking.

I nodded thoughtfully. "You need any help with it?" I offered.

She hesitated. "Sure," she finally said.

"Great!" I exclaimed happily, bouncing in place.

About five hours later, we finished up messing with her costume and agreed to meet at the Boardwalk at around midnight to patrol. Waving Taylor goodbye, I walked out into the street and headed downtown, towards the bus stop I took earlier.

Grinning, I whispered to myself, "Yes! Not even two days have fully passed and I'm already spending a night out with my friend!"

* * *

**Here ya go.**

**-FreohrWK**


End file.
